Valkyries Star Had 1-Word Reaction to NBA Rookie’s Strong Message
Basketball is the epitome of a team sport.
With five players on the floor for a team at any given time everyone's contributions are critical. Select stars can take over a game all by themselves at times, yes, but the impact made on offense, passing, shooting and defense requires a whole team effort.
Yet, in the current landscape of basketball, there is one label that attach itself to certain players: Role player.
Players that may not have the flashiest moves or light up the scoreboard, but perform consitently across the court day in and day out, doing whatever their team needs of them.
In a recent interview on the Chris Vernon Show, NBA rookie Jahmai Mashack was questioned about his experience being role player. Before being drafted in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies, Maschack played for seasons for the University of Tennessee, averaging 4.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game.
When asked when he became "fine" with being a role player in the interview, Maschack had a strong answer.
"It's just funny that you say, like, a role player, I've just always thought about it a little bit different, which is probably why I play so hard in the roles that I do play," Maschack said (via grindcitymedia and chrisvernonshow). "They [the media] don't realize that the guy that's rebounding, the guy that's passing... they're making an impact on both ends and to me, those are the star players."
Maschack's sentiment extends across the sport. Golden State Valkyries center Temi Fágbénlé seemed to support the message, commenting "THISSSS🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥" on the Instagram post of the interview and even reposting it to her own Instagram story.
Fágbénlé has started in nearly every game for the Valkyries in 2025 while averaging 8.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per game. Fágbénlé has her "role," just as the rest of her teammates do, in contributing to the Valkyries success.
Golden State is already on its way to a record-breaking season as an expansion franchise in the WNBA and at a 10-12 record, it takes the effort of everyone on the roster to drive that success forward in Ballhalla and beyond.
Bio: Jack Haslett is a writer and photographer covering Golden State Valkyries basketball for Sports Illustrated. Jack has previously published work with the Sporting Tribune, the Long Beach Current and DIG Magazine, covering sports, community events and news. A graduate from Long Beach State University, Jack has a passion for writing, photography and all things sports.